The Royal British Legion is one of Britain's most respected and best loved institutions. When it campaigns against exorbitant council tax rises it deserves to be heard by this Government. This charity works tirelessly to help those who have served in the Armed Forces. Now the millions (many pensioners) it represents are receiving bills they cannot pay.

Our council tax system is unfair in that it swallows more of the incomes of the poor than the rich. It discriminates against pensioners whose incomes are often fixed or linked to inflation. Many are hit particularly hard simply because they have lived for years in property which has soared in value.

The trades union movement and pensioners' associations have consistently reminded the Government of the promise it made to protect people from inflationary council tax rises, a pledge it has shamefully broken.

It has said that capping the amount of tax councils can charge would be disruptive. How much disruption would be caused by the many elderly people who would rather go to jail than pay a tax they can't afford?

The Government must think again. It must act against those councils whose budgetary incompetence is leading to misery. If it does not listen to us, maybe it will listen to the Royal British Legion, whose proud members risked life and limb for Britain.